WHEREAS, The Western Hockey League (WHL) is an amateur league working collaboratively with the Canadian Hockey League and Canadian Hockey Association; and
     WHEREAS, The WHL has teams in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia in Canada, and the states of Washington and Oregon in the United States; and
     WHEREAS, The WHL offers young athletes ages 16 through 20 a positive experience without compromising their educational objectives; and
     WHEREAS, Through the WHL's scholarship program, a player can receive one year of paid tuition and books for each year he plays with the WHL, and those scholarships can be used at any Canadian or American university, technical school, or other postsecondary institution; and
     WHEREAS, Since 1993, the WHL has awarded more than 1,400 scholarships, and all teams under the WHL charter, including the Seattle Thunderbirds, participate in the scholarship program; and
     WHEREAS, Seattle joined the Western Hockey League as the Seattle Breakers in 1977 and later became the Seattle Thunderbirds in the 1985-1986 season; and
     WHEREAS, The "T-Birds" are members of the 18-team Western Hockey League, playing 72 games between September and March; and
     WHEREAS, The Seattle Thunderbirds have drawn more than 200,000 fans in 10 of the past 11 seasons and share the sports market with the Seattle Mariners American League Baseball team, Seattle Seahawks National Football League team, and the Seattle Supersonics National Basketball Association team; and
     WHEREAS, On February 22, 2003, the Seattle Thunderbirds clinched the United States Division title for the first time in their 26-year franchise history; and
     WHEREAS, The "T-Birds" have advanced to the Western Conference Semi-Finals in the 2002-2003 season as one of the toughest and most successful teams in the WHL;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate congratulate the Seattle Thunderbirds hockey team for helping ensure high standards of education for all its players and their outstanding 2002-2003 season; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to Russ Farwell, Seattle Thunderbirds general manager, and head coach Dean Chynoweth.